EPA greenhouse gas finding rollback sparks debate over climate implications

From rising sea levels to heightened risk of floods and wildfires, Pitt researchers believe the revocation of the Environmental Protection Agency’s Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding has consequences for global climate change.

On Feb. 12, the EPA revoked its 2009 Greenhouse Gas Endangerment Finding that classified carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases as public health-threatening air pollutants under the Clean Air Act. This finding previously served as the scientific and legal basis for the regulation of carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions released from large industrial factories, power plants, vehicles and other sources.

President Trump announced the termination of the Obama-era policy, claiming the finding “hurts industry and the economy.” The finding cited a large body of scientific evidence and has acted as a basis for EPA climate change actions since its implementation.

In 2022, approximately 253 million metric tons of carbon dioxide were emitted into the atmosphere in Pennsylvania. The long-term implications of climate change include increased heat waves in cities that currently experience them, increased heat-related illnesses and species losses.

Jess Dean, a doctoral student in the Department of Geology and Environmental Science, said she finds this choice very disappointing, particularly given recent advances in technology and the “revolutionary work” scientists have been doing over the past few decades to understand climate change.

“Engineers have been working to develop efficient renewable energy technology, and revoking this ruling does not give any motivation for large industrial companies to make the switch away from fossil fuels,” Dean said.

Dean said she believes this decision will have a significant impact on climate change, which is proceeding at a “rate that has never been seen before in geologic history” due to anthropogenic fossil fuel burning. 

“The revoking of this finding gives large companies more agency to produce greenhouse gases without any repercussions,” Dean said. “This will only worsen the rising temperatures we’ve seen, which in turn will have consequences for both marine and terrestrial species.”

Dean said certain areas, like coastal communities that are susceptible to hurricanes, will be more severely impacted by climate change. 

“Areas that experience more wildfires due to decreased snowpack over the past decades and places in which water scarcity is already an issue are going to have to deal with the consequences of this decision as certain conditions worsen due to rising temperatures,” Dean said. 

One major issue Dean has with this decision is that climate change is not merely a local or regional issue.

“Air quality may be something that impacts certain nearby communities, but the greenhouse gases the U.S. produces have repercussions worldwide,” Dean said. “As a large industrial producer, the U.S. has a responsibility to both its citizens and the global population to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and the [revocation] of this finding just made it a lot harder to convince companies that using renewables is worth it.”

Mark Abbott, a professor in the Department of Geology and Environmental Science, said that by ignoring the problem of climate change, humans are only contributing to it.

“From a geological perspective, this decision to revoke the finding is not a good thing,” Abbott said. “While we can ignore the problem, it will not go away. This is a mistake, especially as problems plaguing the climate may only worsen over the next decade.” 

Abbott highlighted the implications of deregulating carbon dioxide emissions.

“Increases in carbon dioxide leads to considerable warming and climate change, which causes increases in sea level, shifts in agricultural belts and increased instances of flooding,” Abbott said. “Rising sea levels also lead to increased agricultural boundaries and ecological shifts.”

According to Abbott, the Earth has seen an unprecedented increase in carbon dioxide over the course of 75 to 80 years, faster than any period in the last several million years. Abbott said this increase is reflected in the geologic record of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentrations, as proven by both direct measurements and ice core records.

“The abruptness and the level of force that we have put upon the climate system with the increase in carbon dioxide is exceptional,” Abbott said. “We are way out of equilibrium in terms of the climate system and the greenhouse gas concentration in the atmosphere, so to do nothing about it is not a good idea.”

Ward Allebach, an instructor in the department of geology and environmental science, said while carbon dioxide itself is not inherently bad, the quantities humans generate are a cause for concern. 

“I do believe this decision could impact the regulation of carbon dioxide emissions and impact the air quality of communities located near larger factories and facilities that release more emissions,” Allebach said.

According to Allebach, climate change is the world’s number one crisis. Due in large part to increased carbon dioxide and greenhouse gas emissions, the 10 warmest years in the historical record have all occurred in the past decade, and since the mid-1990s, approximately 28 trillion tons of ice have melted. 

“A multitude of problems are interconnected — biodiversity losses, ice caps melting and rainforest destruction — these cannot be separated,” Allebach said. “Climate change is the overarching crisis that contributes to all these other problems. Our generation truly needs to take this seriously, and it is evident that the current administration does not take this seriously.”